Retractable Sources

Innovative Source Solutions for Uninterrupted Operation

Veeco’s retractable sources address fundamental limitations of MBE, including source capacity, source removal for maintenance and system uptime. The retractable source allows an individual source to be withdrawn and isolated from the growth environment with the source gate valve and then removed without venting the entire chamber. The source can then be easily refilled with the same material or a new material before being remounted at standard positions to the growth module, allowing growths to continue with minimal interruption. This saves the user from re-qualifying new source to substrate distances and multiple weeks of downtime by avoiding the process of an entire system vent and bake. In addition, the differential pumping option provides a marked improvement in base pressure around the source to reduce contamination of the source material and provide longer lifetimes for sources in corrosive and oxidizing environments. Veeco’s retractable source is the leading solution for material flexibility, system productivity and enhances our leadership with the patented SUMO source technology.